A corporation is recognized as a legal entity or artificial person. What is the term for property owned solely by the corporation?

Understanding the nature of corporate ownership is essential in recognizing that a corporation, as a legal entity, can own property in its own name, separate from its shareholders. When property is owned solely by the corporation, it is termed "severalty." This signifies that the corporation holds exclusive ownership rights to the property, without any shared interests, similar to how an individual might own property entirely in their name.

In a corporate context, severalty means that any rights and responsibilities associated with the property, such as tax obligations or liability, fall entirely on the corporation, not on individual shareholders or other entities. This concept is crucial because it underscores the limited liability feature of corporations, which protects individual shareholders from personal liability regarding corporate debts or liabilities tied to the property.

Understanding that severalty distinguishes individual and shared ownership helps differentiate it from other forms of property ownership. For instance, a trust involves property held for the benefit of others, a partnership indicates shared ownership between individuals or entities, and survivorship tenancy pertains to joint ownership arrangements where property automatically passes to surviving owners upon death. Recognizing these distinctions is key to mastering property ownership concepts in a corporate framework.